Latino households are poised to drive the bulk of net homeownership gains through 2040. But policy, practice, and economic conditions will influence how many Latino households can achieve homeownership and access its wealth-building benefits.

UnidosUS’s Home Ownership Means Equity (HOME) initiative seeks to advance the Latino community’s economic prosperity by investing in solutions to add 4 million new Latino homeowners by 2030. In 2024, UnidosUS, with support from the Urban Institute, undertook seven research projects to uncover new insights on increasing Latino homeownership to inform better policy and practice. 

Join the Urban Institute and UnidosUS for a symposium uplifting lessons from this research that explores piloting localized solutions and increasing housing supply in Latino communities, mitigating climate risk, and enhancing underwriting standards to promote sustainable homeownership among Latino homebuyers.

Opening remarks

• Sarah Rosen Wartell, President, Urban Institute
• Janet Murguía, President and CEO, UnidosUS

Determinants of Racial Homeownership Gaps

• Paul Carrillo, Professor, George Washington University
  Presenting: Determinants of the Spatial Distribution of the White-Hispanic Homeownership Gap

Place-Based Interventions for Latino Homeownership

• Ivis Garcia, Assistant Professor, Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, Texas A&M University
  Presenting: Housing Interventions for Latino Communities in High-Cost, Low-Supply Markets: A Case Study of Puerto Rico Town, Chicago
• Ashley Hernandez, Assistant Professor, Department of City and Regional Planning, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  Presenting: Transforming Barrios: Community-Based Strategies for Latino Homeownership in Gentrifying Cities
• Manda LaPorte, Research Associate, Housing Assistance Council
  Presenting: Advancing Colonias Investment Areas: What Are the Dynamics and Opportunities for Improved Homeownership Options for Hispanic Households in Colonias Investment Areas?
• Luisa Godinez-Puig, Senior Research Associate, Urban Institute (Discussant)

Climate Change and Latino Homeownership

• Linna Zhu, Senior Research Associate, Urban Institute
  Presenting: Hazard Risk and Hispanic Homeowner Exposure
• Mauricio Garcia, Senior Vice President for Programs, UnidosUS (Discussant)

Housing Supply for Latinos

• Olivia Arena, Urban Planning Associate, Office Of
  Presenting: Housing Supply Solutions in Predominantly Latino Cities

Mortgage Credit and Generational Wealth

• Jonathan Halket, Assistant Professor of Finance, Texas A&M University
  Presenting: Differential Access to Credit and Wealth Building through Homeownership
• Patricia Bravo Morales, Research Assistant, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies
  Presenting: What Factors May Impact Latino Homeowners’ Ability to Maintain Equity and to Leave It for the Next Generation?
• Jung Hyun Choi, Principal Research Associate, Urban Institute
  Presenting: Barriers to Accessing Mortgage Credit: Exploring Mortgage Underwriting for Latino Homebuyers
• Laura Arce, Senior Vice President for Economic Initiatives, UnidosUS (Discussant)
   

This event is available for in-person or virtual participation. Please be sure to register correctly. In-person check-in will begin at 10:30 a.m. We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals to engage fully. Please email [email protected] if you require any accommodations or have any questions about this event.

Support for this event is provided by UnidosUS. For more on Urban’s funding policies, go to urban.org/about/organizational-principles.